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COUNTERING CYBER CRIME

RIA Novosti

MOSCOW. (RIA Novosti commentator Vyacheslav Lashkul).

A recent operation conducted by the Russian Interior Ministry's bureau for special technological investigation ended in "the case of the bogus brides." Although a relatively new phenomenon, security analysts believe that cyber-crime is already a new international threat. Hackers can hit individuals, institutions or business. However, more importantly, they can wreck national credit and financial systems, and critical infrastructure facilities. What is Russia doing to counteract this threat? A RIA Novosti correspondent posed this question to Major-General of the police Konstantin Machabeli, the head of the bureau for special technological investigation.

The number of cyber-crimes in Russia topped 10,000 last year. Recently, our officers caught a gang that had been defrauding Russian and foreign banks for a few months. They began by withdrawing $50-100 from clients' accounts, and then used the money to pay for services and goods. They got away with it for a while because they concentrated on smaller sums. But they withdrew money from a huge number of accounts, which eventually meant the losses reached millions.

The operation's mechanism was not sophisticated. The criminals put a few hackers in a specially equipped flat. For months, these guys worked day and night to steal logins and passwords on the Internet to gain access to bank data. They then made transactions using the details of the clients' cards. The organizers of the schemes received money in several regional banks. Our officers investigated the fraud, followed every step and caught the perpetrators red-handed when they were receiving $30 million in a bank. The hackers were arrested later. In all, about 15 people are involved in the case.

The "case of the bogus brides" is another example of cyber fraud. Criminals organized gangs in several regions who met trusting foreigners over the Internet and started "romances" with them. Posing as Russian beauties, the criminal seduced a victim over the net and suggested that he send money for a ticket to a certain address, promising they would meet and live happily ever after. Many foreigners fell for the scheme and sent the money, but never saw any beautiful women. Hundreds of unattached and unfortunate men in the US and Canada fell into the "bogus bride" trap. There were victims in other countries too. The swindlers used fake names and false data, and were very resourceful in finding ways to withdraw money from banks.

Following requests from our law-enforcement colleagues in other countries, we launched an inquiry and identified a criminal organization working simultaneously in a few Russian regions. A criminal case was opened. Our professionals carried out a series of measures, and established the identities of both the "bogus brides" and the masterminds behind the fraud. We tracked the entire chain, from the letters asking for money to the reception of it. We registered every detail up to the gang members' trips to banks. Finally, we organized a large-scale operation in several regions and arrested a number of suspects. However, we continue receiving information from our overseas colleagues and we are still working on this case.

In terms of international terrorism, which, unfortunately, our country has to confront, hackers are not the only people to make energetic use of the Internet. Some Web sites openly incite ethnic and religious hatred, and directly offer services for carrying out terrorist attacks and even cite the prices. Security services all over the world crack down on these activities fast. We are now cooperating with Russian legislators to determine the legal status of such information and to ensure that it cannot be published on the net. We have already submitted the relevant proposals to the State Duma's security committee.